Dr. Christian Bowers is a neurosurgeon with Hurley Medical Center specializing in skull-base surgery and brain tumors. He grew up in the Intermountain West, spending his middle and high school years in Salt Lake City, UT. He attended the University of Denver on a Division 1 Soccer scholarship, earning recognition as an ESPN The Magazine 1st-Team Academic All-American and setting a school record for game-winning goals. After completing his undergraduate studies, he pursued medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine, followed by a neurosurgical residency at the University of Utah.
Dr. Bowers then completed a fellowship in skull base, brain tumor, and cerebrovascular neurosurgery at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute in Seattle, WA training under Dr. Johnny Delashaw, a pioneer in the field. “He is my mentor and now has joined us in Flint, bringing one of the world’s most experienced skull base experts to Flint,” Dr. Bowers states.
“My career has been dedicated to studying outcomes research in neurosurgery, and have been fortunate to have become the world’s leading expert investigating frailty’s impact in neurosurgery. I also have spent my entire career mentoring medical students and continue to do so currently. Clinically, my interests remain neurosurgical oncology, skull base neurosurgery, and traumatic injuries of the brain and spine, along with other acute conditions of the brain and spine. My current leadership role builds on my previous leadership positions as vice chair of clinical affairs in the department of Neurosurgery at the University of New Mexico and program director of the residency training program there and associate residency program at New York Medical Center,” he adds.
Currently, Dr. Bowers serves as the Director of Neurosurgical Oncology at Hurley Medical Center, where he is helping to expand the hospital’s neurosurgical capabilities and improve access to advanced brain tumor and skull base surgeries. He graciously took time to answer a few questions about himself.
Christian A. Bowers, MD
Board Certification
- American Board of Neurological Surgery
- Medical School
- Georgetown University School of Medicine
Residency
- University of Utah School of Medicine (Neurological Surgery)
Fellowship
- Swedish Medical Center – Swedish Neuroscience Institute (Skull Base/Cerebrovascular)
Areas of Expertise/Special Interest
- Neurosugical Oncology (All Brain Tumors)
- Skull Base Neurosurgery – Lateral & Anterior (Vestibular Schwannomas, Pituitary Adenomas, Meningiomas, CSF Leaks)
- Neurosurgical Frailty Risk Assessment
- Traumatic Spinal & Brain Injury (TBI)
- Cord Injury (tSCI)
Tell us about your family and what you like most about Michigan.
I have been married to my wife, Brooke, for 16 years and we have four children – Braylon (13), Lola (11), Bo (10) and Mila (8). Our family enjoys outdoor activities, traveling, and supporting our kids’ passions. The boys are avid travel soccer players and love to golf whenever they can, while the girls love horseback riding, running, and art classes and activities of all types. What I love most about Michigan is the sense of community, Midwestern practicality coupled with friendliness, the natural beauty, the dominating life motto of resilience and grit, and the opportunity to provide high-level care to a patient population that is completely underserved and truly needs it.
I was drawn to Michigan by the opportunity to collaborate with Dr. Marc Moisi at Hurley Medical Center, building a premier neurosurgical oncology and skull base program, and to partner with our shared mutual mentor, Dr. Johnny Delashaw. Flint has a strong need for expanded neurosurgical services, and I saw an opportunity to make a very real, profound and lasting impact in a safety-net hospital setting while working with two of my good friends who are world-class neurosurgeons, alongside a highly skilled team of surgeons and specialists and a health-care community completely dedicated to providing excellent care. Continuing my commitment to serving diverse patient populations made this move an ideal fit for me, professionally. Michigan is an amazing place to raise a family, with some of the best youth sports programs and education systems in the world, so it made a ton of sense personally, also.
Is it true that you have only worked at safety-net hospitals? Why?
Yes — providing care to underserved populations has been a defining principle of my whole career. I have exclusively worked at large, publicly funded level 1 trauma hospitals, including Westchester Medical Center, the University of New Mexico and now, Hurley Medical Center. I strongly believe that every patient, regardless of financial status, deserves access to cutting-edge neurosurgical care. My fluency in Spanish has historically allowed me to break down language barriers and ensure that patients from diverse backgrounds receive high-quality, culturally competent care.
The Hurley Neurological Center has a team you are very familiar with, including your mentor. What’s that like?
Initially, the best part about coming to Hurley Medical Center was the opportunity to become partners with an amazing friend and previous co-fellow, Dr. Marc Moisi, and with our previous mentor, Dr. Delashaw – a world-famous neurosurgical legend with more experience than just about anyone else in the world. Dr. Moisi is a highly accomplished and skilled neurosurgeon with an expertise in complex spinal pathologies and a shared vision for expanding the neurosurgical services in the region and establishing a Neurosurgical Center of Excellence at Hurley Medical Center. Working with both of them as partners has been an incredible experience, as we are focused on bringing new capabilities to Hurley Medical Center, particularly in skull base surgery, complex spine procedures and neuro-oncology. Together, we are building a world-class program and ensuring that patients in Flint and beyond have access to state-of-the-art neurosurgical care.
Dr. Bowers (left) is working with fellow neurosurgeon Dr. Marc Moisi to bring state-of-the-art neurosurgical care to Hurley Medical Center.
You have been working on a project to change the way residents apply for residencies. Can you explain that?
I have been developing a new system to reform how residency applicants are evaluated and subsequently selected. The traditional system often overemphasizes the quantity of publications rather than the quality of research and contribution to the field. To address this, a colleague and I have created objective, standardized metrics including the “Publication Value Unit” and “Arms Race Control Score,” which better quantify an applicant’s research efforts and impact. These metrics aim to reward meaningful, high-quality research over sheer publication volume, reduce inequities in residency selection by focusing on effort and contribution, and encourage a more balanced and fair evaluation of applicants. This initiative has been well-received at national conferences, across a variety of disciplines, and I believe it has the potential to fundamentally change residency selection criteria to ensure that the most capable and dedicated candidates are chosen and create a level playing field to evaluate applicants. We hope it will reduce or eliminate the publication “arms race” that has taken over medical schools and residency applications. The article was published on February 17.
How have you seen your work and your team affecting this region?
In a short time, our work at Hurley has already expanded the neurosurgical offerings available to patients in the area. We are now providing complex brain tumor surgeries, minimally invasive skull base procedures, advanced neurosurgical oncology treatments and open vascular treatments that previously required patients to travel out of the area. The ability to deliver high-level care locally means better outcomes, greater convenience and improved access for patients across Michigan and beyond. In addition, my Neurosurgical Frailty & Outcomes Data Science Lab continues to produce cutting-edge research, contributing new knowledge to the field while mentoring the next generation of neurosurgeons and scientists.
The Hurley Neurological Center is attracting patients from across the state and country?
Yes. The combination of expertise, newly available surgical techniques and a commitment to excellent patient care is positioning Hurley as a regional destination for complex neurosurgical cases. With our continued growth and advancements in neurosurgical oncology and skull base surgery, I expect this trend to accelerate even further. Dr. Delashaw’s name, alone, brings patients in from all over the world.
You are now performing several procedures Hurley has never provided before?
Yes, Dr. Delashaw and I have started doing minimally-invasive skull base and brain tumor surgeries, and have done open vascular procedures such as AVM and aneurysm treatments. These innovations are transforming Hurley into a neurosurgical oncology center, providing patients with access to treatments they previously had to seek elsewhere.
